I have to watch "My Left Foot" again; I think I was 12 or 13 when I first saw it & I remember being blown away by it even then. Daniel Day-Lewis' acting still stands out in my mind as one of the most honest & least insulting depictions of a physically and/or mentally handicapped person.

I still haven't seen "The Butcher Boy", though it's been high on my list. Is "The Dead" based on Joyce's short story?

Ireland - and Irish stories - seems to bring out the sentimental broad stroke-painter in many film-makers. The Quiet Man, entertaining though it may be, is a great example of Ford becoming even more Fordian (in a bad way) and indulging himself. Plus its riddled with cliches.

Of Dr Morbius's list, I'd agree with all but The Boxer, which is Jim Sheridan's worst, laziest film.

I would add :

The FieldThe General (Boorman)Intermission (for being perhaps the only film to reflect the nature of modern Ireland - or Dublin, at least )SaltwaterAngel (Jordan)

A more helpful answer. Carol Reed's "Odd Man Out" is great--I'd probably even take it over "The Third Man." Also, "The Crying Game"--I haven't seen it since it came out, but doesn't that something to do with the I.R.A.? And Henry Hill, Liotta's character in "GoodFellas," is half-Irish. Morrie the wig salesman even has a line at one point alluding to Hill's Irishness that is clearly meant to echo the John Marley line above. Remember: Morrie's wigs are tested against hurrican winds!

Aaarrrghh...I don't know how I could have overlooked "Miller's Crossing," which is on the shortlist of greatest films of the past 20 years for me. It's definitely the Coens' best; sometimes I think it's even better than "GoodFellas." Eddie the Dane: "Because if you told me and I killed you and you were lying, then I wouldn't get to kill you then."

I guess i feel it is sad because of the difficulties he had to endure, regardless of his personality. But there were definitely some funny moments. It's a sadness that hits you after when pausing for a moment to think about it, even though on the surface he's like any other pain in the ass artist

it is hilarious. think i recommended it to some other ilxors on another thread or maybe via some other form of communication, real-life or social media, can't remember. i watched it again last year and still laughed throughout.

not seen the film in years but did the book in school and even then was having reservations. the whole premise is fairly iffy with lots of slightly racist stuff, and it should have been about house and techno music, which was actually popular in working class dublin and did come from black america. but obv roddy doyle is old and rockist.

ok I'm going to spoiler alert this even though I'm talking about a 26 year old movie:

the character development is non-existent, nobody changes. the characters are not particularly likable in the first place. not least the protagonist, whose pontificating about music and especially soul is a lot of essentialist bobbins - soul is the rhythm of sex and the factory, it's simple music, but it brings you a sense of transcendence and it's the music of the working classes. then there's the whole "irish are the blacks of europe, dubliners are the blacks of ireland, and northsiders are the blacks of dublin". no. black people are the blacks of europe.

there's a romantic storyline between the protagonist and one of the backing singers which consists of her obviously liking him and him rebuffing her by acting like he doesn't notice she obviously likes him.

lot of the boys perving at the girls and going "phwoar" and making double-entendres and being told to fuck off, seems quite of its time now.

it's fairly long, 100 minutes or so, but the running time is padded hugely by the musical numbers, which are fine enough if you like a serviceable irish cover-band playing 60s soul music.

the ending - none of them make it in the music industry, other than the frontman who is an arsehole and who the rest of the characters call an arsehole the whole movie long, but they're all better for the experience somehow, despite their live going back to the same old shite.

No, this doesn't change throughout the movie. Some shit happens, nobody develops as a character, people fuck up relationships, the music is undeniably good and everyone finishes up no wiser or better off.

And it's a great movie, taken on those terms and not with any templates applied imo. Patchy and all as the plot, acting and actual realism are.

then there's the whole "irish are the blacks of europe, dubliners are the blacks of ireland, and northsiders are the blacks of dublin". no. black people are the blacks of europe.

even at the time i wondered how he got away with this. i actually loved the barrytown trilogy of books in my teens, mainly because of the dialogue i guess, and some of the thoughts of the characters, but i think the van and the snapper are far, far better than the commitments. paddy clarke, ha ha ha is good too.

essentially the commitments has too much of roddy doyle pontificating about culture - the van and the snapper are a lot more about human behaviour - that said the snapper is p fucking weird too. like a character is raped but it's all okay in the end cos she loves her baby.